David Nail – Fighter

I must confess, this album is one of those that I was most looking forward to in 2016. David Nail’s three albums to date have been utterly faultless; last album I’m A Fire was a tough act to follow and, in all honesty, I began listening to the new album Fighter with no expectations of that sort of quality. How wrong I was.

“I truly believe this album, from top to bottom, is the first time I have been able to tell my story in real-time of where I am right now as an artist, a husband and a father. I wrote more songs for this album than I have for any of my other three so it’s already more personal. Fighter speaks to my journey, my life and now to where I am personally and professionally.” This couldn’t be more accurate. Aside from the first three tracks, the album exposes the softer, more reflective side to David’s music. The highlight of the album is David’s duet with Lori McKenna on ‘Home’. This has the same impact on me as ‘Brand New Day’ from I’m A Fire; incredibly atmospheric with truly stunning harmonies. Not to mention the lyrical beauty of the track which hits you like a ton of bricks.

Lady Antebellum fans might be familiar with ‘Lie With Me’, which was on their most recent album 747; initially you’re tricked into thinking it’s a totally different tune; the instrumentation is completely different to the Lady A version and it’s been given that certain David Nail edge! As he proved with his recent Uncovered EP, he’s more than capable of transforming a song into his own. The album then becomes very personal. The title track ‘Fighter’ was written for his wife Catherine and illustrates the struggles they’ve experienced together and how they keep pushing through it. This leads into ‘Babies’, a sign of the end to all the struggles and an outpouring of love for the twins. Clearly a point in David’s life where he can stand back and reflect on where he is, and it’s provided the material for an incredible track.

As mentioned earlier, this isn’t an album full of ‘here today, gone tomorrow’ radio hits, it’s a carefully crafted, heartfelt collection of stunning tracks that we’ll still be playing in years to come.